Genre:
Pop,
Rock
Hometown: Philadelphia, PA
Wielding a mastery of mind-melting guitar, Christian O’Connor fronts a band of modern warriors that are busting down barriers in worlds sentient and decentral. Letting licks rip like Billy Gibbons, Derek Trucks, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Jonny Lang, Langhorne Slim, and Gary Clark Jr., O’Connor isn’t just making a statement, he’s detonating one. Mixing Stevie Ray Vaughan type frenetics with an Iggy Pop frenzy, he’s a formidable force for those keeping score.
“Fly” is the soul-nourishing new single from Laughing From The Other Side of Fear, the forthcoming third release from this soulful Philadelphia-based songwriter and musician. The ballad, with its themes of strength and perseverance, continue Christian’s thread of the power of positive thinking and self actualization addressed in recent singles, "Giving You More,” "Great Day to Play" and "Crush Those Mountains." The songs are a preview of an incredible 16-song collection to be released in 2027 via Inferential Entertainment (including a double-LP vinyl). In the lead-up, fans will be treated to an exclusive NFT offering.
With a series of high-profile sports broadcast placements for the likes of ESPN, NFL Network, NASCAR and FOX Sports, (selections from his debut full-length, Dogma, Dharma, Grace, and Karma, and follow-up, Wine Over Water / Blood Over Wine), O'Connor is also an in-demand composer for film & TV. In 2020, he was tapped to contribute original music to the Rory Karpf produced docuseries, UFC Fight Island: Declassified, which was Executive Produced by Dana White and aired on ESPN+. His rousing anthem “We Rise Up” (feat. Devon) was the perfect accoutrement for the UFC's struggle to produce a major sports event in the midst of a global pandemic. The 4-part series documented the production of UFC 251 on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.
Helping people rise up, to their feet, to sing and dance is what he does best. Over the last few years, he’s wowed tens of thousands of concert-goers while on the road with Jennifer Paige, Leigh Jones, Moo$h Money, and River Monroe while also sitting in with Robert Randolph and teen phenom Grace Bowers. During incendiary sets at NASCAR & NHRA races, Boston’s Harborfest & First Night (opening for Ripe) and a red-hot college tour, any part of the venue is fair game, from speaker stacks to table tops to bar tops to crowd-tops. Navigating these varying terrains with the same vigor as fingers bounding the fretboard, O’Connor’s explosive live performances always leave the audience gasping for air with fists raised everywhere.